Longterm peeing problem

This is a place to gain some understanding of cat behavior and to assist people in training their cats and dealing with common behavior problems, regardless of the method(s) used. Keep in mind that you may be receiving advice from other cat owners and lovers...not professionals. If you have a major problem, always seek the advice of a trainer or behaviorist!

I have a very longterm problem with my female cat - she's a DSH, about 8.5 yrs old. I'll give some history: she's always been a neurotic and skittish cat and about as long as I've had her she's peed outside the box. She lives with another cat, her brother, who is basically the alpha cat - although he's pretty mellow and affectionate with me, he sort of dominates her. He's mostly been indoor-outdoor, and she's mostly been indoor, although lately she's been going outside more. We have three litter boxes that I clean every day, and two are uncovered - since he's often outdoors, a lot of times at least one of the boxes is totally clean, so I don't think it's a litter box issues.
She's been on an anti-anxiety drug, Clomipramine, for almost 6 years - it does seem to help but it doesn't totally stop the peeing. She seems to go thru periods where she pees more, and lately it's been pretty bad.
We now have a 7 month old baby and I'm less tolerant of this problem. Honestly if I didn't know she would be euthanized I would probably give her away.
Most recently she started peeing right outside his bedroom door, which is also right near the backdoor. We don't have much carpet in our place, partly because of her peeing, but we have hardwood floors and I'm getting worried about repeated peeing in the same spot warping the wood. So we've put some aluminum foil down there, which seems to work so far. But I'm worried she'll just find another place to pee - she always has.
Are there any suggestions people can make?
We're just really frustrated!

Have you taken the cat to the vet? If not, please make an appointment soon. Inappropriate urination can indicate an underlying health issue. You mention that your cat pees a lot. That could be a symptom of diabetes. Other symptoms include excessive hunger, weight loss, and sugary smeling urine.

Well, this is not a new problem. My cat doesn't necessarily pee a lot, just pees frequently outside of the box. She gets regular checkups, and although they've never checked her for diabetes in particular, she has had bloodwork done prior to dental cleanings, etc. The last bloodtest was done less than 6 months ago. They always say she's in good health. And she's chunky, so definitely no weight loss.

I already do many of the things mentioned on the website - clean the boxes every day, make sure there's enough litter, and I have 3 boxes total for 2 cats (one who is outdoors much of the day). Often at least one of the boxes is totally clean. So I don't think that's the issue.

Have you had your vet run a urinalysis? I have been a long-term problem pee-er also, and it turns out that I have flare-ups of VERY painful sterile cyctitis, especially during stressful times.

I'm still having trouble peeing in the box 100% of the time, but now my mom knows to give me pain medication once the problem starts and it resolves much faster. I have also been doing MUCH better on an all wet food diet. Another thing that seems to have made a big difference is my family taking out a wand toy or a laser and playing with me every evening until I'm TIRED. My mom thinks this helps to alleviate my stress, since she says I'm neurotic. I think it's just fun time that makes me sleepy, but whatever!

I read that Caridad is expecting kittens. I hope that you get her fixed after this litter, as there are many cats out there being euthanized becuase they don't have homes, and until they all have homes, we just don't need more coming-though kittens are wonderful and we love them.

This could also be contributing to her not using the box, or peeing where she isn't supposed to.

Female cats in heat advertise for males, often as males do, by 'marking' space as their own. Its sort of like putting out the 'this is my home and territory' banner to other cats.

They also advirtise to a male intact male when they are in season.

My advice:
A) Get her neutered as soon as she's able to be so, which will now be a bit til after the babies.
B) Get Feliway diffusers, and put them around the house.
C) Get Natures Miracle. You can order it online. It's an enzymic cleaner that will neuteralize the peed in spot.
D) I have heard calming collars/door know hangers work wonders. They are sold t hrough IBDkitties.net.

Provide your baby girl with much attention....she may be feeling she needs to keep her space for herself, her people for herself. I would also suggest getting your male cat neutered and: